Namor has finally made his MCU debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Seeing that the villain turned anti-hero of the sea is one of the oldest Marvel characters and technically the first mutant from their comic world, it seems only right to finally have him arrive in the MCU. So in honor of his arrival, I thought the King of Talokan deserves a king-sized dish. For this Cosmic Cuisine, I’m proud to present Namor’s Shrimp Bowl, a hearty meal for a king or any seafood-loving MCU fan.
After a long day of running, or zipping around under the sea, Namor needs to recharge himself and this shrimp bowl recipe is perfect for that. There are tons of peppers and onions, bringing lots of bright colors meaning plenty of vitamins, which every superhero needs. The pineapple and lime add a nice fruity pick-me-up. The shrimp packs a powerful protein punch and the garlic rice rounds out the whole dish nicely. I’d like to think Namor would love this meal.
Namor's Shrimp Bowls
These colorful bowls of roasted veggies and shrimp are exactly the kind of thing that an underwater superbeing would love to chow down on after a long day of saving the world. The pineapple salsa makes a perfect contrast with the savory flavors of veggies and shrimp. So cook up and dive into Namor's Shrimp Bowls!
Ingredients
Garlic Rice
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 Cup long grain brown rice (uncooked)
- 3 Cups water
Shrimp and Veggies
- 1 Lbs shrimp
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 orange bell pepper
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 1 whole red (purple) onion
- 1 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 lime
Pineapple Salsa
- 2 cups diced fresh pineapple
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 3 Tbsp cilantro
- 1 Tbsp lime juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Mince garlic. Add 1 Tbsp of olive oil to the rice pot over medium heat. Add minced garlic and cook for two minutes. Add 3 cups water and 1½ cups uncooked brown rice.
- Stir rice and increase heat. Bring water and rice to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes until the water is all absorbed and the rice is soft.
- If the shrimp is frozen place it in a bowl of room-temperature water for about 10 minutes while chopping veggies.
- Cut onion and peppers into strips approximately 1/4 to 1/2 wide. Place in a large bowl. Remember to save half of the red pepper for the pineapple salsa.
- Drain shrimp and dry gently on a paper towel. Add to the veggie bowl.
- Measure out the cumin, paprika, chili powder, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and pepper and add sprinkle over top the shrimp and veggies.
- Drizzle the 2 Tbsps of olive oil over the shrimp and veggies.
- Use tongs to toss the shrimp and veggies until they are fully coated with the seasonings.
- Put the shrimp and veggies onto a 9x13 baking pan. Cover with aluminum foil.
- Bake for 25 minutes at 425°F.
- While the shrimp and veggies are cooking, make the pineapple salsa.
- Peel and dice pineapple. Measure 2 cups into a bowl.
- Dice half of the red pepper you previously set aside. Add to the pineapple.
- Mince cilantro and add 3 Tbsps to the pineapple and pepper.
- Cover with 1 Tbsp lime juice and 1/4 tsp salt. Stir until thoroughly mixed.
- If everything goes right, the rice, shrimp, and veggies should all finish cooking at approximately the same time. Fluff the rice and remove the shrimp and veggies from the oven.
- Assemble bowls by scooping some rice into each bowl. Cover with shrimp, onions, and peppers. Top with pineapple salsa. Squeeze a slice of lime over your bowl and dig in!
Timing is everything with this recipe
This dish is a little more complicated than most of our other recipes. There are many different things going on but if you plan things out, everything can be ready at the same time. Make sure to start with the rice because that will take the longest. Once it’s started go ahead and start on the veggies.
Once the veggies and shrimp are slid into the oven, then you can make up the salsa. By the time that’s ready, everything else should be ready too. It’s an intense 45 minutes but the end product is worth it!
A piece of advice to keep in mind is to prepare some of the ingredients early! My mother and I cut, sliced, and chopped all the fruit and veggies early so that when it came time to cooking, it was an easy assembly. While timing is key (and if you don’t have time earlier in the day that’s completely fine) preparing some steps early may make your life just a bit easier.
Easy Clean-Up Option
In the recipe, I tell you to mix the onions, peppers, shrimp, and seasoning in a bowl before placing it in the pan. If you want to cut out a few dishes then just put the veggies and shrimp straight into the pan. Add the seasonings and oil to them, and toss them right in the pan. You may need to use a larger pan to accomplish this.
Also, if you defrost the shrimp in the fridge earlier in the day, then you can skip the bowl and strainer for the shrimp. It takes a little prep, but having only two pots to wash at the end of the meal is nice.
How to prepare the veggies
By far the easiest way to peel garlic before mincing is by smashing it (and it’s fun!). Use your knife to cut the hard root off the end of the clove, then lay your knife flat on top of the clove. Bring your palm down hard on the knife and voila! The garlic is peeled. The skins pop right off from the pressure and can easily be separated. This method has the added bonus of busting up the garlic for you. It makes chopping the garlic that much faster and easier. But please, be careful and aware of your hand and knife. While using the flat side, you shouldn’t hurt yourself, but always be careful when handling a blade.
Slicing the onions isn’t very complicated for this dish. Still, I always suggest slicing the top off the onion, then slicing the onion in half through the root, leaving the root intact on each half. Once the onion is sliced in half, peeling an onion is easy. In this case, you want long strips so just slice the onion from front to back and toss the root away. Easy and done.
There is a trick to slicing peppers. Chop the top off the pepper just below the curve. Then slice the bottom off just above the bumps. Now slice one wall down the side from top to bottom. The pepper can now be fully opened as one long sheet. The seed pod should detach on its own as you unroll the pepper, if it doesn’t use your knife to cut the white pith connecting the seed pod and remove it. You can now easily cut the pepper into neat even strips.
Namor’s Shrimp Bowl is a versatile dish
The nice part about this dish is that it lends itself to tweaking. If you don’t have red, yellow, or orange bell peppers, any color of bell peppers can be used. Likewise, red onions work best in this recipe but sweet onions are delicious too. The protein can be substituted for chicken breasts or thighs (which taste even better) or thinly sliced steak. Even tofu can be used if vegan is more your style. If you want more spice add a jalapeno pepper to the mix, or increase the cumin and chili powder. Even the rice can be traded for tortillas. The possibilities are endless and delicious.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever arrives in theaters on November 11. Are you excited about the film? Plan on making some Namor’s Shrimp Bowls to prepare for it? Let us know on Twitter @LunaGauthier19 and @MyCosmicCircus! And if you haven’t already, check out our other Black Panther: Wakanda Forever inspired Cosmic Cuisine, Black Panther Claws!
